population theories as religion vs. Science

From Nick Eberstadt in First Things (back in 1994-- recently republished in their 20th anniversary issue)...

The tendency to invest in population theories with an almost religious zeal—as well as to harness them to the service of political movements buoyed by public hysteria—might be considerably reduced if there actually were a body of knowledge demonstrably capable of explaining population change, or of connecting this change predictively with various determinants or consequences. Unfortunately, such an understanding of the process of population change does not exist.